Facing extensive dental treatment can be stressful—and even more so when you realize what it will cost. It’s a hard fact of life, but some dental work can be expensive.

The good news, though, is that it’s possible to keep your costs at a manageable level, even with limited finances. And your best first step is to become proactive with dental care now, before problems appear or get worse.

There are good reasons for making room in your budget for regular dental cleanings and checkups: for one, dental cleanings coupled with your own daily hygiene help keep bacterial plaque, the main cause of dental disease, from causing gum disease or damage to the tooth surfaces. And seeing us regularly makes it more likely we’ll detect a problem before it inflicts too much harm.

Regular visits are also important for establishing a relationship with us. As we become more familiar with you and your own individual risk factors for dental problems, we can then develop a treatment strategy to minimize those risks or take action to decrease their impact.

The latter point has direct bearing on the financial side of your care. It’s tempting to postpone a recommended treatment for a mild to moderate issue because of the expense. But receiving treatment now could save you from major expense later.

Perhaps, though, you’re actually facing that major expense now and the full weight of what it will cost is bearing down. Even in this situation, you may actually find there are less expensive ways to deal with the problem, at least temporarily until you can afford a more permanent solution.

For example, if you’ve lost a tooth or have had it extracted, you may be able to opt for a partial denture or similar less costly restoration—at least for the time being. Eventually, when you’re prepared financially, you can replace it with a dental implant or another permanent restoration. In the meantime, you’re able to regain a reasonable level of dental health.

The key is to invest in your teeth and gums now whatever their state of health. The efforts you make today could save you from a greater health and financial burden tomorrow.